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Product review: Hunted & Gathered Dry Wors
Hunted & Gathered, the makers of my favourite beef jerky have a new(ish) product: Dry Wors. This is their version of a traditional South African dried beef sausage. These are expensive ($20.50 per pack) but worth every cent. They are made with organic grass-fed beef, organic coriander seeds, organic black pepper, organic vinegar, organic coconut sugar and pink lake salt. They are chewy but less than jerky, and also fattier. Great shelf-stable snack to have handy. Hunted and Gatheredhuntedandgathered.com.au
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Product review: Ferment It
These guys make, you guessed it, fermented products. Their current range includes: beetroot, apple & inca berry; kimchi; lime, mango & chili and the good old sauerkraut. You can buy them fresh OR you can get a bag of dehydrated mix + starter cultures to make your own. Last time I saw them at Eveleigh markets I grabbed a mixed pack for $45. I liked them all and appreciate the variety because certain flavours go better with certain dishes. For example, I like plain sauerkraut with bacon and eggs and kimchi with canned tuna or salmon and avocado. You might expect the fruit-containing ones to be sweet but they are…
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Product review: Tonicka kombucha
I get excited every time I see a new brand of kombucha popping up because that means I can continue avoiding making my own. The medium size of Tonicka kombucha (330 ml) comes in an elegant dark bottle that made me think of boutique beer. I bought it at Dr Earth for $5.14 (discounted from $6.50). They make only one flavour, which is a good thing because that means no added sugary mixes to their brew. I liked its crisp, tangy flavour. Will buy again. Tonicka Kombuchawww.tonicka.com.auOn Facebook
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Product review: Coconut Magic raw energy bars
I get really excited when I see crap-free bars in supermarkets. I don’t eat them regularly because they’re still treats IMO, but it’s good to know they’re available for whenever I feel like having a healthier dessert. Coconut Magic is one of the newest brands in the market. The bars are non-GMO, vegan, and free of dairy, soy, gluten and refined sugar. They come in three flavours: coconut (dates, almonds, coconut, cashews, pecans, coconut chips, coconut flower nectar, coconut oil), cacao (dates, almonds, cashews, coconut, tahini, raw cacao powder, coconut oil, coconut nectar) and raspberry (dates, almonds, coconut, goji berries, cashews, raspberry powder, coconut nectar, coconut oil). Not surprisingly, my…
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Product review: Little Cossack water kefir
I had heard a lot about water kefir but couldn’t picture it in my head. For me, kefir had to be milky and with a consistency similar to yoghurt. It turns out water kefir is similar to kombucha: lightly fizzy and with a sourish flavour. This particular brand, however, was a lot sweeter than the kombuchas I’ve tried. The ingredients are: water, organic raw sugar, fresh organic ginger juice, organic ginger powder, organic black strap molasses, naturally made baking soda, kefir, infused with organic dried figs, and organic lemons. A 375 ml bottle ($5.60 regular price, $4.42 with discount at Dr Earth) has 33.5 grams of sugar! That’s what happens…
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Product review: CO YO coconut yoghurt
CO YO, the wonderful company making coconut yoghurt available for those who can’t tolerate dairy (or choose not to have it), has been around for a while but has been recently trying to expand their reach. Their yoghurts are vegan and free of dairy, soy, gluten, lactose, and added sugar. They have quite a few varieties that come in tubs from 250g up to 1k. All flavours contain organic coconut milk (88% in the fruit varieties, 98% in the plain and chocolate), starch (tapioca, pectin), stevia and live vegan cultures including Lactobacillus casei, L. rhamnosus, L. acidophilus, L. bulgaricus, Bif. bifidum, Bif. lactis, and S. Thermophilus. Note: I’m not quite…
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Product review: Cave Foods Mammooth bar
Although I’m not very keen on caveman references in paleo-friendly foods, and do believe homemade food and not packaged foods should make the bulk of our diet, I do appreciate the convenience of portable crap-free edible products. Thanks to the increasing popularity of Crossfit and paleo/primal approaches to eating, several companies have created more natural alternatives to protein bars. Cave Foods is one of the such companies, and their product is called Mammooth bar. I grabbed a vanilla bar at Paleo Cafe (they didn’t have chocolate – bummer!) for $5. It comes wrapped in butcher’s paper secured by a sticker that reads: “No: gluten, added sugar, artificial flavouring or preservatives.”…
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Product review: Herbs of Life crispbread
Now that we don’t eat regular crackers we sometimes miss a salty crunchy vehicle for butter. We like Flats and are not that fond of Kitz crackers (although their sweets are sensational), but our favourite cracker substitute without a doubt is Herbs of Life crispbread. We’ve tried the herbed almond crispbread (oh man!) and the herb flax crackers (too flaxy for my taste). We’ve also tried the cinnamon almond crispbread (perfect not-too-sweet sweet crackers!). Check out the lists of ingredients in the photos below. Most ingredients are organic and locally sourced, and the snacks are dehydrated at low temperature (technically raw). The prices listed below are from Dr Earth Newtown.…
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Product review: Luz cold pressed almond milk
As a FFG (former fat girl) I’m cautious when it comes to liquid calories. I drink mostly water, mineral water, black coffee or tea, but when I saw these little bottles in my local health food shop I couldn’t resist. Not only the bottles were cute, but the label read espresso with cold pressed almond milk followed by “gluten free, dairy free, soy free, cholesterol free (duh!), no additives or preservatives”. Sounded too good to be true. The label on the bottle next to it read Medjool dates with cold pressed almond milk. This is *real* almond milk (as opposed to the boxed varieties), so it sediments (give it a…
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Product review: Kitz Living Foods
Nuts, seeds and other plant foods (grains, legumes, etc.) contain anti-nutrients that can keep our bodies from digesting them properly and absorbing minerals and other micro-nutrients (for a longer explanation read this article). Cooking, soaking, sprouting and fermenting are ways to reduce the anti-nutrient content of foods. Nuts and seeds that have been soaked (usually overnight) and then dried at a low temperature are commonly known as “activated”. Kitz Living Foods offers activated nuts and seeds and snack products made with them that are free from: gluten, wheat, dairy, yeast, eggs, soy, peanuts, sesame, fish, shellfish and cane sugar. They are raw, vegan and made from mostly organic ingredients. We’ve…
